2nd Edition

Rethinking Dance History Issues and Methodologies

Edited By Larraine Nicholas, Geraldine Morris Copyright 2018
    272 Pages
    by Routledge

    272 Pages
    by Routledge

    The need to ‘rethink’ and question the nature of dance history has not diminished since the first edition of Rethinking Dance History. This revised second edition addresses the needs of an ever-evolving field, with new contributions considering the role of digital media in dance practice; the expansion of performance philosophy; and the increasing importance of practice-as-research. A two-part structure divides the book’s contributions into:

    • Why Dance History? – the ideas, issues and key conversations that underpin any study of the history of theatrical dance.

    • Researching and Writing – discussions of the methodologies and approaches behind any successful research in this area.

    Everyone involved with dance creates and carries with them a history, and this volume explores the ways in which these histories might be used in performance-making – from memories which establish identity to re-invention or preservation through shared and personal heritages. Considering the potential significance of studying dance history for scholars, philosophers, choreographers, dancers and students alike, Rethinking Dance History is an essential starting point for anyone intrigued by the rich history and many directions of dance.

    Contents

    Notes on Contributors

    Preface

    Part One

    INTRODUCTION: WHY DANCE HISTORY?

    Geraldine Morris and Larraine Nicholas

    1. MEMORY, HISTORY AND THE SENSORY BODY: DANCE, TIME, IDENTITY
    2. Larraine Nicholas

    3. CARA TRANDERS'S REVERIES
    4. By herself

    5. BEYOND FIXITY: AKRAM KHAN ON THE POLITICS OF DANCING HERITAGES
    6. Royona Mitra

    7. AFRICAN-AMERICAN DANCE REVISITED: UNDOING MASTER NARRATIVES IN THE STUDYING AND TEACHING OF DANCE HISTORY
    8. Takiyah Nur Amin

    9. DANCE WORKS, CONCEPTS AND HISTORIOGRAPHY
    10. Anna Pakes

    11. RECONSTRUCTION AND DANCE AS EMBODIED TEXTUAL PRACTICE
    12. Helen Thomas

    13. PRESERVING THE REPERTORY AND EXTENDING THE HERITAGE OF MERCE CUNNINGHAM
    14. Karen Eliot

    15. MAKING DANCE HISTORY LIVE — PERFORMING THE PAST

    Henrietta Bannerman

    Part Two

    INTRODUCTION: RESEARCHING AND WRITING

    Geraldine Morris and Larraine Nicholas

    1. DESTABILISING THE DISCIPLINE: CRITICAL DEBATES ABOUT HISTORY AND THEIR IMPACT ON THE STUDY OF DANCE
    2. Alexandra Carter

    3. DECOLONISING DANCE HISTORY
    4. Prarthana Purkayastha

    5. MANY SOURCES, MANY VOICES
    6. Lena Hammergren

    7. ‘DREAM NO SMALL DREAMS!’: IMPOSSIBLE IMAGINARIES IN DANCE COMMUNITY ARCHIVING IN A DIGITAL AGE
    8. Astrid von Rosen

    9. WHEN PLACE MATTERS: PROVINCIALIZING THE ‘GLOBAL’
    10. Emily E. Wilcox

    11. CONSIDERING CAUSATION AND CONDITIONS OF POSSIBILITY: PRACTITIONERS AND PATRONS OF NEW DANCE IN PROGRESSIVE-ERA AMERICA
    12. Linda J. Tomko

    13. ‘DANCIN' IN THE STREET’: STREET DANCING ON FILM AND VIDEO FROM FRED ASTAIRE TO MICHAEL JACKSON
    14. Beth Genné

    15. JUDSON: REDUX AND REMIX
    16. Marcia B. Siegel

    17. RUTH PAGE, FEMININE SUBJECTIVITY, AND GENERIC SUBVERSION
    18. Joellen A. Meglin

    19. EXTENSIONS: ALONZO KING AND BALLET’S LINES
    20. Jill Nunes Jensen

    21. GISELLE AND THE GOTHIC: CONTESTING THE ROMANTIC IDEALISATION OF THE WOMAN

    Geraldine Morris

    Biography

    Geraldine Morris is a Reader in Dance and Programme Leader of the MA in Ballet Studies at the University of Roehampton.

    Larraine Nicholas is Honorary Research Fellow in the Dance Department at the University of Roehampton.